Exactly.

I do find it annoying that they also apply this restriction when there’s a weather waiver in effect.

BA does not allow free change on the day(FCOD) for international flights. As noted earlier, BA does have FCOD on some CE and economy+ fares.
See:
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/brit...tickets-9.html

And I assume my fares just never met that criteria - I have never been able to get on an earlier BA flight where it wasn't a full fare one segment flight. I haven't asked in a while - but I would quite frequently fly things like MIA-LHR-XXX - often I fares or mid tier economy fares - and I would go (no checked bags) to a gate with an earlier departure and was always told I have to fly as ticketed.

I have also never been able to get onto a BA waitlist - last time I tried was LHR-MIA where (it was BA ticket stock) I was booked onto a later BA flight in J after the AA flight where I was in confirmed F (actually confirmed F - after the previous' day BA A fare flight was cancelled) was also cancelled. Asked in the Concorde room if I can get on a standby list for the earlier BA flight preferably in F but also J - and was told that's not possible.

On the other side I never had a problem getting on a waitlist on AA and quite frequently got the Admiral's club people to allow me to change routing to get somewhere earlier.

I would agree - though once at the airport it's usually not a problem. I change between MIA and FLL a few times a year if one gets me home sooner

Anyone can not get status easily on AA or other US airlines (yet). They aren't Marriott or Hilton.

I think the SDC fee is counterproductive. Once a flight departs with an empty seat, that seat is gone. You let someone take an earlier flight, that plane now leaves full AND you opened up a seat for a later flight. With the way operations are these days, having that seat available can save way more than the $50 or whatever amount they charge for a SDC.

Just my two cents.

Without the fee people would be more likely to book the cheaper flight that departs at an odd hour and then try to SDC to a more desirable one. That causes revenue leakage, probably more than the scenario you outline. If anything, standby could be free, but SDC as much 24 hours in advance is too generous (for non-elites!).

Possibly, however you can still do that today.

Given the high load factors across the industry and UA and DL allow this AND manage to get yield premiums over AA, I'm not convinced that this is that big of an issue.

It's all explained here. Anyone can do a confirmed change or standby via the app but there are some limitations...

• There is a fee between $75 and $150 for confirmed changes, unless you are in a premium cabin or are OWE. That's a pure revenue grab and AA does it because they can.
• There are a limited number of seats available for confirmed changes. The exact algorithm is murky, and the app and the website sometimes give you different availability. No idea what's behind this. You just have to embrace the mystery.
• If you've been upgraded to domestic first class you can then do a confirmed change into first class on any other eligible flight that day.
• Anyone can stand by for an earlier flight. Only elites can stand by for a later flight. One assumes this is because non-elites are less likely to clear the standby list and would risk being stuck. AA is just avoiding a potential customer service headache here.
• No changes to origin or destination or connection point. This is an IT limitation and lets AA make the change without a ticket reissue. DL and other airlines have more flexible systems.

The above rules govern the automated changes through the app and website. Generally if you approach a gate before boarding and ask to go standby they will put you on the list if you haven't checked luggage.

It's interesting to contrast those with, e.g., DL. Fee is a uniform $75, waived for Gold (Platinum equivalent) and up, as well as on refundable fares. Main Cabin fares require availability in the same Main Cabin fare class; paid Comfort+ (MCE equivalent) gets last seat availability in Main/C+. PE/F/J fares get last seat availability in booked cabin or lower. Paid or complimentary upgrades do not transfer (this acts as a subtle disincentive for elites to SDC, except perhaps to later flights). Can change connecting points, but can't change connecting to nonstop (I forget if the reverse is allowed). Coterminals (e.g. JFK/LGA/EWR, DCA/IAD/BWI, ORD/MDW, etc.) aren't allowed by rule, but the rule is customarily ignored for Diamonds.

AA upgrades transferring is a substantially more liberal rule than DL's, but special inventory would be substantially more restrictive.

As noted, DL requires original booking class inventory unless you have a paid C+ or FC fare. In practice, this significantly limits SDC availability when on cheaper Main fares. Also, many DL fares on non-stop routes have a non-stop routing requirement in fare routing rules. Agents seem to be able override routing rules in fares, but I've also had an agent refuse an SDC request from non-stop to connecting when on a fare with non-stop routing requirement. DL online SDC enforces routing rules in fares. Although if there are flight delays (I believe threshold is 15 minutes or more), it will open up numerous alternative routings for no fee changes and waives original class inventory requirement.

A problem with airlines since time immemorial. Once, a long time ago, I was flying DTW-PHL on NW at Christmas to visit my parents. The inbound flight was fogged in at MSP, so I called my parents to say don't leave for the airport until I call and say I have an ETD. Once the plane arrived and was almost ready to board, I called back and my dad said, "Your mom and Dee (my sister) left three hours ago because the girl on the phone said you had left Detroit." This at a time when the plane hadn't even left MSP yet.

An issue with some airlines. A couple of weeks ago I was checked in for an Air France flight from SGN and 90 mins before rhe flight, the departure board showed a 25 minute delay. The flight ended up leaving 25 minutes late

Having decent information meant that I could wait in the lounge for another 25 minutes before heading to the gate

You haven't met the criteria since MIA-XXX is not a European route, In the case of the LHR-XXX component of MIA-XXX, it is down to fare rules as to permitted changes

There are waitlists for certain fare bases, however on the day it is unlikely that the booking class would open up and allow for ticketing and reissue. There is no standby offered by BA - if there is availability to rebook , you can rebook and get reticketed, but no standing by

It is easy to do - they just need to take flights. Book an expensive ticket and can get status - it isn't difficult; few people would throw money away to get a pretty card though